Cataract Surgery

A cataract is a clouding of the eye's natural lens, the structure that sits behind the iris and helps focus light onto the retina. Over time, proteins in the lens break down and clump together, causing it to become cloudy, yellowed, or opaque. Light can no longer pass through clearly, leading to blurred vision, glare and halos around lights, faded colors, and difficulty seeing at night.

Cataracts develop gradually, most often as a natural part of aging, though they can also be influenced by prolonged UV exposure, certain medications (such as long-term steroid use), diabetes, previous eye injury or surgery, and family history. Nearly everyone will develop some degree of cataract if they live long enough — it's one of the most common eye conditions we treat, and also one of the most treatable.

There is no eye drop, medication, or exercise that reverses a cataract. Surgery is the only effective treatment, but the good news is that modern cataract surgery is one of the safest, most refined procedures in all of medicine, with a very high rate of success and patient satisfaction.

During surgery, we make a tiny incision (usually under 3mm, and often self-sealing without stitches), remove the cloudy natural lens using a technique called phacoemulsification — where an ultrasonic probe gently breaks the lens into small fragments that are then suctioned out — and replace it with a clear, permanent intraocular lens (IOL). Your vision often begins to improve within a day or two, with full stabilization over the following weeks.

Because the natural lens is removed, cataracts never return once surgery is performed. In some patients, the thin membrane behind the new lens can become cloudy months or years later — a simple, painless in-office laser treatment (YAG capsulotomy) resolves this in minutes if it happens.

For patients who want the most precise, customized approach available, we offer femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS).

Traditional cataract surgery relies on the surgeon's hands and a blade to create the incisions and open the lens capsule. With femto-assisted surgery, a computer-guided laser performs several of the most critical steps with a level of precision and reproducibility that hand technique alone cannot match:

The laser maps your eye in three dimensions before treatment, allowing each step to be planned to a fraction of a millimeter. Femto-assisted technology is particularly valuable for patients selecting toric, multifocal, or EDOF lenses, where precise centration and sizing directly affect visual outcomes, and for eyes with denser cataracts or other anatomic considerations where extra precision is beneficial.

We'll discuss during your consultation whether the added precision is likely to benefit your particular eyes and visual goals.

One of the most important decisions in cataract surgery is which artificial lens will replace your natural one. This lens stays in your eye permanently, so we spend real time with each patient discussing lifestyle, hobbies, occupation, and visual priorities to find the right fit.

Your entire cataract journey — consultation, diagnostic testing, surgery, and follow-up care — takes place at our own accredited ambulatory surgery center, right here in our practice. You never need to be referred out to a hospital or an outside surgical facility.

From your first consultation to your final follow-up appointment, you'll be cared for by the same familiar faces in the same familiar place.